With all the evidence having been presented to the jury, the barristers step from their roles as the prosecution and defence to engage the audience in a Q&A session.
Drawing upon their own experiences from working in courtrooms, David and Richard, offered answers, advice and explanations regarding health and safety in the workplace and on site.
“Profits before safety is the nuclear button in health and safety.”
Using Marks and Spencer as an example (which was fined £1m as well as £600,000 court costs in 2011 when it disregarded health and safety), Richard stated that companies, especially large firms, may try to cut corners to ensure minimum loss of profits. However, this will not hold up in court if an incident should then occur or authorities are made aware.
“Eye-watering” fines or prison sentences can be the result of overlooking health and safety regulations, even if no one is injured. Beyond this, a company’s reputation can be irreversibly damaged.
Succeeding the Q&A session, the jury was invited to form a decision on who out of the defendants, if any, were guilty.
In next week’s episode, the jury finally reveals its decision having deliberated on the evidence provided.
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Author: Molly Hookings
Molly joined the editorial team in March 2019. She has several years’ experience working in broadcast and journalism, as well as marketing and PR. Past experience includes working for the BBC and independent publishing houses. If you have a story you think Molly might be interested in, please email: molly@eventindustrynews.com
